says age 20 for both. Says he was a labourer and she was a spinster. I guess anyone over age 18 and unmarried was a spinster? Is this true? Hmmm funny customs they had back then.

An unmarried woman might still be called a spinster today though we tend to use the words Unmarried or single woman now the word spinster would still appear, I believe, in a marriage register today. Regards Jenny DeAngelis <<says age 20 for both. Says he was a labourer and she was a spinster. I guess anyone over age 18 and unmarried was a spinster? Is this true? Hmmm funny customs they had back then.>>

Hello Coleen You wrote, "They were married in England was said in a written history they were married in another area due to the fact he was Irish Catholic and said she was Protestant, they married and came to the USA to avoid Parental displeasure." You say that according to their marriage certificate John & Mary were both aged 20 and the marriage took place in a Catholic church (you don't say which one). The age of majority at that time was 21yrs, so they both required the consent of parents. This throws into question the idea of parental displeasure at the marriage. The parents just had to withhold their consent. So the witnesses, John DWYER and Catherine HYLAND, may well have been the father of Mary and mother of John but one cannot say so for certain. However, I don't doubt the parents gave their consent and were probably present at the marriage. I think that the Banns book, if one exists, might help with this. The fact that they were married in a Catholic church makes the statement that she was a protestant also unlikely, in my view. This view is strengthened by DWYER being an Irish name. Regards, John